Scottish Parliament

Written Answers

Tuesday 7 December 1999

Scottish Executive

Agriculture

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to assist young farmers to remain in farming or continue their family’s involvement in the industry.

Ross Finnie: The Executive is committed to help in the creation of a strong and sustainable agriculture industry. This will benefit farmers of all ages and give an incentive to young people to continue the family farming tradition.

Agriculture

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to encourage new entrants into farming.

Ross Finnie: The Executive’s aim is to help create a strong and sustainable agriculture industry which will prove attractive to potential new entrants.

  The concept of financial incentives to encourage new entrants into farming received little support during a public consultation exercise earlier this year when it formed part of a package of possible measures under the Agenda 2000 CAP reform agreement. Although we have no plans to introduce such a measure, the land reform proposal to create new limited duration tenancies should have the effect of increasing the availability of farms to let, thus opening up additional opportunities for new entrants to get into farming.

Agriculture

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many meetings it has had with the major supermarket chains to discuss Scottish agricultural produce and the promotion of Scottish produce, with whom it met, who represented it, when these meetings took place and whether the issue of supermarkets’ profit margins on Scottish agricultural produce was discussed.

Ross Finnie: I met with the Technical Manager of Marks and Spencer on 7 August. I had also planned to meet the Chief Executive of Asda, but this meeting was postponed at the company’s request following their take-over by Walmart.

  On 10 November, the First Minister attended an event to discuss UK supply chain issues and met the Chief Executives of Sainsbury’s, Asda and Somerfield, and the Trading Director of Tesco.

  The issue of supermarket profit margins and their impact on Scottish agricultural produce was not discussed at these meetings. Competition policy is a reserved matter and it would be inappropriate for the Scottish Executive to discuss such matters when the Competition Commission are actively looking at the supermarkets’ competitive position.

Agriculture

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the forms, record sheets and any other paperwork, by agricultural sector, issued by its Rural Affairs Department and its predecessor departments which farmers are required to complete in order to comply with legislation or in order to apply for subsidies and grants.

Ross Finnie: Documentation which the Rural Affairs Department requires farmers to complete in order to comply with legislation relates to statistical surveys. The main survey is the agricultural and horticultural census carried out annually in June. Several other sample surveys are carried out for specific sectoral interests.

  There are a number of schemes under which the farmer can apply to the Rural Affairs Department for grants and subsidy. Each scheme usually has its own explanatory booklet and forms. An overview of the schemes and material is given in the Scottish Agriculture – A guide to Grants and Services booklet.

  The Department aims to minimise the bureaucratic burden on Scotland’s producers. As part of this process, an external review panel of farmers and crofters has recently been examining the form-filling burden on the industry. This panel is due to produce a report on their findings soon.

Agriculture

Mr Kenneth Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when it will make a statement on its plans for implementation of the Common Agricultural Policy Agenda 2000 reform package.

Ross Finnie: I have today written to the Convener of the Rural affairs Committee announcing our plans for the detailed implementation of the Agenda 2000 CAP reform package and outlining our proposals for further consultation on the Rural Development Regulation and on the possible introduction of a scheme involving modulation of direct farm subsidies. A copy of this letter has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe).

Civil Service

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-2087 by Donald Dewar on 3 November 1999, when it expects to be in a position to make a further announcement about the information gathered on any possible relocation of its staff.

Donald Dewar: The Executive’s policy on the location and relocation of public service jobs was set out in my reply of 15 September to Question S1W-1558 from Mr Duncan McNeil. My reply made clear that where new units or agencies are set up there will be a presumption against an Edinburgh location. Other relocation options outwith Edinburgh will be considered when appropriate opportunities arise. Costs in all cases will be taken into account in deciding on location, along with operational effectiveness and impact on the staff concerned.

Environment

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive why Historic Scotland’s application to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency for consent to discharge sewage into Loch Ness was not made prior to its application for planning permission for the proposed visitor centre at Urquhart Castle, Loch Ness.

Rhona Brankin: Historic Scotland submitted a Notification of Proposed Development (NOPD) for the proposed visitor centre to Highland Council in May 1997. The NOPD contained details of the proposed method of disposal of treated waste water including the location of the proposed outfall. Following a public local inquiry approval was given for the project in February 1999. A consultant design team was appointed in April and a formal application was made to the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency in August at the earliest opportunity after the necessary design work had been completed.

Environment

Karen Whitefield (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it was consulted over the amendments to The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 1997 which have been prepared by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions for the whole of Great Britain.

Sarah Boyack: Those Regulations govern the packaging recovery scheme, by which means the UK discharges compliance with the recycling and recovery provisions of Directive 94/62/EC on Packaging and Packaging Waste. They came into effect on 6 March 1997 and have since been reviewed twice, in July 1998 and August 1999. The reviews have given rise to two amending Regulations. The first of these came into effect on 4 June 1999. The other, The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) (Amendment) (No.2) Regulations 1999, have yet to be made. These amending Regulations, which extend to Great Britain, have been laid at Westminster by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions. They are subject to affirmative resolution and, subject to the outcome of the debate on them, will come into effect on 1 January 2000.

  Although the implementation of the Directive in Scotland is a devolved matter the packaging recovery scheme was designed to operate in a seamless way across Great Britain. The United Kingdom was served with a Reasoned Opinion by the European Commission in June 1998 about the non-implementation of certain aspects of the Packaging Directive. The UK accepted that it was in default and the consequent need to demonstrate full compliance as early as possible, together with an overriding operational need to meet the 1 January deadline, made it appropriate for the amending Regulations to be made, exceptionally, by the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions for the whole of Great Britain.

  The Scottish Executive considers that matters affecting Scotland should be legislated for by the Scottish Parliament unless there are very clear overriding reasons for not doing so. My Department is currently conducting a review of the way in which the Packaging Regulations operate in Scotland with a view to improving demonstrable compliance for the future.

Finance

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what changes to the budget plan outlined by the Minister for Finance last month have been made to accommodate subsequent announcements by the Minister for Health and Community Care and the Minister for Communities.

Mr Jack McConnell: None.

Finance

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of the capital programme allocation and expenditure for local authorities for each of the last three financial years, the current financial year and the next three financial years.

Mr Jack McConnell: For details of capital allocations and expenditure for local authorities for the current year and each of the last three financial years, I refer the member to my letter of 9 September, sent in response to questions S1W-743 and S1W-744. A copy is available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre.

  For the next three financial years, only provisional non-housing capital allocations for 2000-01 are available. These are shown in the attached table.

  Provisional Non-Housing Allocations 2000-01

  


 


Gross allocation 
  

Public Transport 
  Fund 
  

Outstanding Challenge 
  fund 
  

Other commitments 
  

Authority total 
  



 


£000s 
  

£000s 
  

£000s 
  

£000s 
  

£000s 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

15,168 
  

2,800 
  

 


 


17,968 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

10,852 
  

960 
  

 


 


11,812 
  



Angus 
  

6,088 
  

 


 


 


6,088 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

10,828 
  

 


 


 


10,828 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

3,419 
  

 


 





3,419 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

9,449 
  

320 
  

 


 


9,769 
  



Dundee City 
  

9,111 
  

250 
  

 


 


9,361 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

6,397 
  

590 
  

 


 


6,987 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

7,173 
  

 


 


 


7,173 
  



East Lothian 
  

5,837 
  

370 
  

 


 


6,207 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

5,260 
  

467 
  

 


 


5,727 
  



Edinburgh (City of) 
  

28,056 
  

5,050 
  

 


 


33,106 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

10,053 
  

2,000 
  

650 
  

 


12,703 
  



Falkirk 
  

8,422 
  

365 
  

 


 


8,787 
  



Fife  
  

17,164 
  

1,373 
  

 


 


18,537 
  



Glasgow City 
  

41,736 
  

3,200 
  

157 
  

 


45,093 
  



Highland  
  

21,549 
  

 


 


 


21,549 
  



Inverclyde 
  

7,745 
  

 


 


 


7,745 
  



Midlothian 
  

4,573 
  

1,302 
  

 


 


5,875 
  



Moray 
  

5,676 
  

 


 


 


5,676 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

9,877 
  

 


 


 


9,877 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

20,927 
  

1,260 
  

 


 


22,187 
  



Orkney Islands  
  

4,050 
  

323 
  

 


 


4,373 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

9,585 
  

423 
  

3,600 
  

 


13,608 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

10,059 
  

650 
  

 


 


10,709 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

11,212 
  

 


 


 


11,212 
  



Shetland 
  

216 
  

 


 


 


216 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

7,057 
  

750 
  

 


 


7,807 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

18,718 
  

850 
  

 


 


19,568 
  



Stirling  
  

6,018 
  

150 
  

 


 


6,168 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

5,052 
  

300 
  

 


 


5,352 
  



West Lothian 
  

19,021 
  

 


 


 


19,021 
  



SPTA 
  

 


2,900 
  

 


7,650 
  

10,550 
  



Tay Road Bridge Board 
  

 


 


 


800 
  

800 
  



Totals 
  

356,348 
  

26,653 
  

4,407 
  

8,450 
  

395,858

Fisheries

Tavish Scott (Shetland) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will make representations to Her Majesty’s Government regarding the production tax which Crown Estate Commissioners impose on Scottish salmon farmers.

Mr John Home Robertson: The tax referred to represents a site lease rental charge. It is calculated on throughout and indexed to the annual average market price. Total income generated from this source in 1998 amounted to £2.407 million, roughly 1% of production value. The Scottish Executive is constantly in touch with Her Majesty's Government on a range of matters.

Fisheries

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list the forms, record sheets and any other paperwork, by fisheries sector, issued by its Rural Affairs Department and its predecessor departments which owners of fishing vessels are required to complete in order to comply with legislation and what plans it has to review any "red tape" in the fisheries industry.

Mr John Home Robertson: Documentation which the Rural Affairs Department may require fishing vessel owners to complete relates primarily to the licensing of fishing vessels, control and quota management. Most require to be completed only in specified circumstances. Owners are routinely required to complete an application for a fishing vessel licence (form AFL2), annually in the case of vessels over 10 metres in length and biennially in the case of vessels of 10 metres or under.

  We will continue to try to ensure a balance between the aim of minimising the bureaucratic burdens on the industry whilst securing an appropriate level of regulation in the interests of sustainable fisheries.

Fisheries

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will list all existing and proposed regulations relating to capacity penalties, engine power, quotas and licences, and related matters, in respect of the sea fisheries sector.

Mr John Home Robertson: A list of extant European legislation, including that relating to fisheries, can be found in the Directory of Community Legislation in Force , published by the Office for Official Publications of the European Communities. There is also a Commission database of Regulations (EUR-Lex) available on the internet.

  A list of the main domestic fisheries acts and orders is set out in the annual report and accounts of the Scottish Fisheries Protection Agency. The most recent version was published and laid before the Scottish Parliament, and copies were sent to Members of the Scottish Parliament, in July this year. Various aspects of fisheries are also subject to administrative rules and arrangements.

  Regulations are proposed to give effect in Scotland to obligations arising out of recent Community legislation on fisheries control arrangements, satellite monitoring and technical conservation measures; and for fish conservation and quota management purposes. These will be subject to appropriate parliamentary procedure.

Health

Ms Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will guarantee the continuance of intensive care facilities at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh.

Susan Deacon: I fully appreciate concerns about the effect the withdrawal of paediatric cardiac surgery might have on the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit at the Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh. Work is underway to ensure the Unit’s continuing viability. As a first step, at my request the Chief Medical Officer is undertaking a detailed discussion with key staff at Lothian University Hospitals NHS Trust about the Unit’s position.

  The Unit’s viability must be a key factor in all future decisions about the location of tertiary paediatric services in Scotland. The framework for those decisions was set out in the report of the Acute Services Review, which advocates a coherent distribution of services amongst the existing tertiary paediatric centres in Aberdeen, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

Health

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what is the rationale behind the priorities given to the New Opportunities Fund relating to the distribution of its cancer programme.

Susan Deacon: The new health initiative, which was launched by the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) on 22 September 1999, covers cancer prevention, detection, treatment and care.

  We believe that an emphasis on prevention, using the additional funding from the NOF initiative to complement our health promotion and prevention drive to stop people getting cancer in the first place, would provide the greatest benefit for Scotland’s health. Supporting and expanding palliative care services for patients and families would also be a beneficial use of these additional funds.

Health

Paul Martin (Glasgow Springburn) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of the management staff costs at Stobhill Hospital during the last five financial years.

Susan Deacon: The information requested on the management staff costs at Stobhill Hospital during the last five financial years is as follows:

  


1994-95
£000 
  

1995-96
£000 
  

1996-97
£000 
  

1997-98
£000 
  

1998-99
£’000 
  



N/A 
  

2,638 
  

3,654 
  

4,135 
  

4,122 
  



  The definition of management cost upon which the Trust has based its calculations was revised in April 1998. Therefore, only the 1997-98 figure which has been rebased to the revised definition, and the 1998-99 figure are comparable.

  The management cost figure for 1994-95 is not available, as this information was not held within the Trust’s Annual Accounts for that year.

Health

Mary Scanlon (Highlands and Islands) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action is being taken to ensure that the 11% of established radiology posts in Scotland currently unfilled will be filled.

Susan Deacon: Scottish Executive Health Department officials met with representatives of the Royal College of Radiologists and of the Scottish Council for Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education (SCPMDE) in May of this year to discuss planning for the radiology workforce. They recognised a need for an increase in the number of trainees in radiology in Scotland and therefore SCPMDE have increased the numbers of Specialist Registrars in this specialty by five per year from 71 to 76 and will consider further increases in the future.

Health

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what proportion of Scotland’s population received NHS care in the years 1996-97, 1997-98 and 1998-99.

Susan Deacon: Data on the total numbers of episodes of NHS care for inpatient and day case treatment and the total number of consultant outpatient and Accident and Emergency attendance’s for the years 1996-97, 1997-98 and 1998-99 is provided in the table. Comprehensive information for all aspects of treatment carried out within a primary care setting is not available.

  It is not possible to provide the proportion of the population who have received NHS care in hospital as many patients have had more than one episode of treatment or attended an outpatient clinic on more than one occasion.

  NHS In Scotland: Inpatient1, Day Case1, Outpatient2 and Accident and Emergency Activity; Years Ending 31 March 1997-1999

  

 

1996-97 
  

1997-98 
  

1998-99p




Total Inpatient Episodes3


969,283 
  

982,804 
  

981,574 
  



Total Day Case Episodes 
  

384,291 
  

414,869 
  

437,819 
  



Total Outpatient Attendance’s 
  

4,720,866 
  

4,759,628 
  

4,857,736 
  



Total Attendance’s at A&E  
  

1,550,704 
  

1,571,608 
  

1,556,258 
  



  p Provisional

  Notes:

  

Includes NHS 
  activity in joint-user and contractual hospitals.


Excludes NHS 
  activity in joint-user and contractual hospitals.



  3. Includes transfers between specialities, between significant facilities or between NHS hospitals.

Health

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to issue guidance to Health Boards on the development of self-treatment plans for asthma sufferers and, if so, when.

Susan Deacon: The Scottish Executive is very much in favour of people with asthma being fully informed about their treatment and as far as possible taking an active role in the management of their condition. The National Asthma Campaign (Scotland) is very keen to promote the extended use of self-treatment plans, and I will be meeting them to discuss this and other asthma issues in the near future.

  It must be borne in mind, however, that the treatment of people with asthma is not identical in every case, and must ultimately be a matter for individual clinical judgement after discussion with the patient and, in the case of young children, the family.

Health

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to issue guidance to education authorities on the provision of facilities for young asthma sufferers to access to medication at school and, if so, when.

Mr Sam Galbraith: The Scottish Executive has established a working group to develop good practice guidance on the administration of medicines in schools in general. Voluntary groups including the National Asthma Campaign for Scotland are represented on the Group. It is expected that the good practice guidance will be published early in 2000.

Justice

Mr Kenneth Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will be responding to the Justice and Home Affairs Committee’s Stage 1 report on the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Bill.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Executive is responding today to the Committee’s report and copies are available to members in the Document Supply Centre.

Land Reform Bill

Kay Ullrich (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether its proposed Land Reform Bill will include provisions exempting voluntary groups, community groups and charities from paying any fee in return for accessing information on land ownership and whether it will clarify the current effect of, and future effect this Bill may have on, section 25 of the Land Registers (Scotland) Act 1868 as amended by the Land Registration (Scotland) Act 1979 in this regard.

Mr Jim Wallace: The Land Reform Bill will not exempt voluntary groups, community groups and charities from paying fees for accessing information on land ownership from the Register of Sasines or the Land Register of Scotland, nor will it affect the legislative basis for charging those fees. The Registers of Scotland Executive Agency, which maintains and compiles these registers, incurred operating expenses of nearly £34 million in 1998-1999. If this cost was not covered by fees paid by those making use of the Agency’s services then this would fall to be a burden on taxpayers, including those who never have any call to access the registers.

  Ministers are still considering whether the creation of a new database of land ownership in rural areas would represent good value for money. If such a database is established, decisions will have to be taken as to its funding and also of course in relation to charging for its use.

Local Government

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive why it has told East Dunbartonshire Council to cut its planned expenditure for 2000-01 and whether it has considered the potential impact of such a reduction in expenditure on local service provision and council jobs.

Mr Jack McConnell: I considered very carefully the budget submission, which East Dunbartonshire Council sent me after my meeting with the former leader on 28 June. I took account of the likely impact on local services and this is why East Dunbartonshire, uniquely, has been given two years to return to guidelines.

Local Government

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to ensure that existing levels of local service provision in East Dunbartonshire are maintained and, in particular, whether these plans include the release of additional funds to East Dunbartonshire Council.

Mr Jack McConnell: It is a matter for East Dunbartonshire Council to decide its own priorities for delivering services within the overall budget available to it and having regard to the Executive’s expenditure guidelines. I expect to announce AEF figures for all authorities soon.

Local Government

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive what response East Dunbartonshire residents and councillors who contacted the Executive about the council’s budget situation received and what plans it has to meet with East Dunbartonshire’s new administration to discuss the budget situation.

Mr Jack McConnell: I have agreed to meet the administration of East Dunbartonshire Council to discuss their budget situation soon. I first met with the former Leader of East Dunbartonshire Council about this matter on 28 June and there have been a number of further letters and meetings in the intervening period.

Parliamentary Questions

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answers to questions S1W-1382 and S1W-1383 by Mr Jack McConnell on 17 September 1999, whether it will publish the detailed computation referred to in those answers showing how the conclusion that the average cost of answering written Scottish Parliamentary Questions is £100 was arrived at.

Mr Jack McConnell: The estimated average cost of answering Scottish Parliamentary Questions which was provided in previous answers was calculated by asking Departments of the Scottish Executive to take a sample of such questions and to make an assessment of the time spent at each grade on preparing an answer. The standard costs for each grade were then applied, giving an average figure of £100 per question in the sample. Not surprisingly, and for a range of reasons, there were significant variations in the cost per individual question. As has been explained in my responses to previous questions on this issue, this was a preliminary exercise, based upon a relatively small sample and was intended specifically to provide a broad indication of costs quickly to members who had asked for that information. That is why we have undertaken to provide a better and more comprehensive assessment of the costs of answering Scottish Parliamentary Questions, based on a larger sample.

Rural Affairs

Richard Lochhead (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are in place and what measures it intends to introduce to consult specifically tenant farmers on legislation and measures that affect their livelihoods.

Ross Finnie: We consult as widely as possible when planning new administrative and legislative measures and make every reasonable effort to ensure that those likely to be directly affected by a proposal, in this case tenant farmers, have an opportunity to give their views. We handle each consultation in a way that best suits its circumstances.

Rural Affairs

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive which agencies and organisations approved the final proposal to the European Commission in respect of the rural stewardship scheme.

Ross Finnie: It is for Scottish Executive Ministers to approve such proposals and I did so on 7 July after a wide-ranging consultation exercise involving around 120 organisations and individuals. Following consideration of 63 written submissions, including those from Scottish Natural Heritage, Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, Highland and Islands Enterprise, Historic Scotland, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, River Authorities, Deer Commission, Crofters Commission, Forestry Commission, National Trust, Rural Forum, Scottish Consumers Council, National Farmers Union of Scotland, Scottish Landowners Federation, Scottish Crofters Union, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, Scottish Environmental Link, Scottish Wildlife Trust, World Wide Fund for Nature, Organic Sector bodies, Scottish Agricultural College, and Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group, a series of bilateral meetings was held with key players to discuss the scope and structure of the scheme. The process was rounded off with a seminar attended by key environmental, farming and land-owning interests to discuss the detail of the proposed management prescriptions.

  I am confident that the proposals will command a broad measure of support.

Rural Affairs

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will publish the report from the Scottish Executive to the European Commission on the proposed rural stewardship scheme and, if not, why not.

Ross Finnie: The Executive have submitted scheme proposals to the European Commission for technical scrutiny. These will need to be adapted to take account of the EC Rural Development Regulation prior to formal submission as part of the Rural Development Plans required by the Regulation. I will be happy to make details available at this stage. A copy of the formal proposals will be placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICE) and will be sent to all who were involved in the consultation process, as well as to any person or organisation who wishes a copy.

Student Finance

Mr Brian Monteith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide a revised estimate of the cost of the Independent Committee of Inquiry into Student Finance.

Henry McLeish: The Independent Committee of Inquiry into Student Finance was allocated a budget of £700,000 in July. This remains the budget available. The Secretary to the Committee, who is responsible for financial matters on behalf on the Committee, has confirmed that there is no intention to seek additional funding for its work.

  The Committee’s report will include a statement of expenditure, covering the costs of the research programme, the consultation exercise, Committee expenses and Secretariat running costs.

Transport

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-1785 by Sarah Boyack on 16 November 1999, when it will award a research contract that includes an assessment of the potential impact of road charging on the rate of traffic accidents and the number of resultant injuries and fatalities.

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to S1W-1790 by Sarah Boyack on 16 November 1999, when it will award a research contract that includes an assessment of the economic impact of road charging and workplace parking charges on Scotland’s towns and cities.

Sarah Boyack: The contract will be awarded after completion of the discussions referred to in my answer of 16 November have taken place and a competitive tendering exercise has been completed. No firm date is available at this time.